King Brady Is Gone
by LadySilvermist
Summary: Brady is gone, and Lanny who isnt what he seems most of the time is falling apart. Flooded with memories and fear, can a single note restore him?


_You IDIOT! WHY?! WHY DID YOU LEAVE THE ISLAND?! WHY DID YOU LEAVE __**ME**__?! WHY IS SHE SO SPECIAL YOU'D RUN OFF TO CHANGE FOR HER?! _These thought swirled violently in Lannys head. He had shut himself up in his room. He was sitting on the edge of his bed, hands balled into fists in his hair as silent tears streaked down his face.

The island had awakened that morning to find Brady gone. He had taken a balloon back to Chicago, after hearing Mikayla say that she would never want him unless he matured. Lanny had pretended to be delighted. But inside, he was coming apart, his mind fracturing along with his heart.

It was no secret that he had wanted the kings gone. At first, although he had pretended it was because he wanted to seize the throne, he had wanted them gone because Brady made him feel…weird. Like his insides were squirming, and his heart was going way too fast. It confused and scared him. He didn't know what it was, only that it felt funny and that it happened whenever he was near Brady.

The kings didn't even seem to notice him trying to get rid of them. Pretty soon, although he still pretended to hate them, he quit trying to send them to their doom. That had come about because one night, Lanny had a very bad dream. He dreamed he was lost, completely alone in the jungle, on the dark side. He ran around a corner, and there were Tarantula People, waiting for him. They raised their spears, and he covered his face, waiting for the pain, but there wasn't any. He peeked around his hands…and there stood King Brady. A spear pierced all the way through him, and blood dribbled out of his mouth. He held out his hand to Lanny and whispered a single word: "Run." Then he collapsed to the ground.

But in the dream, Lanny couldn't run. He just dropped to his knees and grabbed Bradys face in his hands. He screamed, and cried, and begged the king to wake up. He wasn't afraid of the Tarantula People now, he felt like there was no way they could possibly hurt him any more than they already had.

Suddenly, he was pulled awake. He was screaming and crying, but there were arms around him, thin but strong, and a calm, soothing voice saying his name. He slowly calmed, bit by bit, and looked up. Bradys soft brown eyes looked back at him. Lannys head dropped in shame. He wanted to tell Brady to go away, he couldn't bear to be seen this way, so weak and helpless. He opened his mouth, but all that came out was a soft whimper.

"Are you ok?" Brady had asked. Lanny just shook his head. No, he was not alright. He was completely NOT alright. "Nightmares can't hurt you, Lanny. But I know how it feels to be terrified. I feel like that almost all the time," Brady said. "Look, don't take this the wrong way, but if you want, I can stay in here with you tonight. When you have nightmares like that, it's best to have someone nearby, just in case it happens again. Would you like me to stay with you?"

Lanny remembered being momentarily paralyzed by indecision, before finally nodding yes. Brady pulled the covers up around them and curled his arm around Lannys waist. They laid down and soon, Brady was asleep, his breath sifting through Lannys hair. Lanny didn't sleep again all night, and he relished every moment of it. It was the first of many such nights.

And now, Lanny was all alone. Because Brady loved Mikayla, and he had left for her. And Lanny, who had never told Brady his feelings, was alone and scared. There was no one now who would hold him after a nightmare, and no one who could help him cope…the only person he had ever loved was gone!

Lanny rocked back and forth, gut-wrenching sobs falling from him as he yanked at his curly mop of hair. He collapsed backwards on his bed, tears blurring his vision. He grabbed his pillow, and froze as he felt something underneath it. He picked up the pillow and, tucked underneath, was a piece of paper with 'To Lanny' scrawled on it. Lanny opened it.

Dear Lanny,

Hi...Its Brady. I know you're probably worried about me…to be honest, im worried about me too. Lanny, I have some confessions to make, and you're going to be shocked and probably disgusted too, but I have to tell you and hope for the best. The first one is, although I have a feeling everyone is going to blame themselves, or maybe Mikayla because of how often she's scorned me, it's no-ones fault I left. No-ones, that is, but mine. The second is, I do have a REASON for leaving, and it's the next confession. My last confession is that…I love you. And it's not in a cousin-ly way, or a brotherly or best friend like way...I love you the way I thought I loved Mikayla. And now you are probably grossed out, and if you are, its fine to stop reading here. But I just need to write all this out, to get it out before it makes me pop..a few weeks ago, you had one of your bad nightmares, and I came in here to snuggle with you (yes, it was snuggling, no point in denying that now) and I heard you say my name in your sleep. I know you couldn't really have been dreaming of me, and theres no chance you love me, but when you said my name, it finally pushed all my feelings into place. Everything clicked and I realized I loved you, and it kept getting stronger and stronger…I had to leave, because being around you and knowing you cant possibly love me just kills me inside! So ive gone home, back to Chicago. I'm with my Aunt and Uncle…and, well…if you read this, and you maybe…somehow…have the same feelings for me that I have for you…maybe you could visit me. I'll be waiting.

Eternally, Loyally, and Lovingly Yours,

King Brady

Lanny stared at the paper for a split second, then jumped out of bed. He stuffed the letter in his pocket, ran out into the courtyard, and beyond. He was going to need a hot air balloon.


End file.
